If you have a spare hard drive lying around, a great way to get some extra life out of it is to drop it into an external drive enclosure and connect it to your computer for some fast, portable storage. However, drive enclosures vary widely based on price, size, available connections, and features. This week, we're going to take a look at five of the best external drive enclosures, based on your nominations.

Zalman's VE series drive enclosures are small, portable sleds for 2.5" hard drives that support any SATA drive you toss into them and connect to your PC via USB or eSATA (in the case of the VE200) or USB 3.0 (in the VE300). You may have to do a little hunting to find them though—technically they've been discontinued, but they're still so popular that you can find them—especially the VE300—in black and silver on Amazon (linked above) or your favorite online PC parts retailer, mostly hovering around the $50 USD mark. What makes the Zalman really special is the digital display on the drive case that provides useful information, and its one-touch backup and locking features. The VE300 model even works as a virtual optical disk drive, allowing you to mount it as a virtual DVD, CD, or Blu-ray drive, and files on the drive as virtual disks, perfect for installing a new OS, for example. Bonus: The enclosure powers itself via USB, so no hefty brick required!

The Patriot Gauntlet series of drive enclosures has been around for a while, and are well known for their rugged, simple design. The Gauntlet 2 (~$20) supports both 2.5" SATA drives and SSDs up to 9.5mm in height, and is completely powered by its USB 3.0 connection. The enclosure is also backwards compatible, so if you don't have USB 3.0 on your system just yet, it's still a good buy. The Gauntlet Node ($~90) on the other hand is a Wi-Fi-enabled drive, meaning you can stream files and media from it to your iOS or Android device (using Patriot's apps) or to any computer in your house without connecting it directly. It even has an on-board rechargeable battery so you don't have to connect a brick to keep the data flowing.

If you have a larger drive you want to put to good use, the Rosewill RX-358 is a great option. It supports 3.5" SATA drives, and connects to your PC via USB 3.0 or eSATA. Slap the drive in, turn it on, and leave the drive enclosure on your desk. You can turn the blue LEDs on the front on or off depending on what you prefer, and the enclosure boasts a shiny 80mm top-mounted fan to keep your drive cool. This model is also remarkably affordable, coming in around $40 at Amazon, both for the traditional black model shown here, and the silver special edition that's also available.

Perhaps you're no fan of keeping a bunch of enclosures on your desk, or you need to swap drives frequently. Maybe you have a mix of 2.5" and 3.5" drives to use. If this sounds familiar, the Thermaltake BlacX might be for you. It's affordable, coming in at $35 at Amazon. Just pop a SATA drive into the top, make sure it's firmly docked, and connect the dock to your computer via eSATA or USB 2.0. If you want USB 3.0 in your dock, there's a model for $50 that supports it. The best part about the BlacX series is that the drives are hot-swappable, so pop one out and put in another just like you're swapping USB keys. Have more than one drive you want to connect? Try the $41 BlacX Duet, which supports two drives. Have a bit more to spend? Grab the USB 3.0-equipped version for just over $60.

If you need the ultimate in portability, the Vantec NexStar TX offers a rugged aluminum case in an incredibly slim and trim sled that's easy to work with for—seriously—less than $10. One of you mentioned that Vantec is almost a standard in a lot of IT shops, and I can concur—the TX is a popular choice for technicians and minimalists a like looking to make the most of their drives without giving up too much space. The TX supports SATA drives and connects to your PC via USB 2.0. If you need a little more speed or have larger drives, consider the Vantec NexStar 3 NST series, which offer eSATA and USB 3.0 connectivity for your 3.5" drives. It'll set you back around $40.

Have something to say about one of the contenders? Want to make the case for your personal favorite, even if it wasn't included in the list? Remember, the top five are based on your most popular nominations from the call for contenders thread from earlier in the week. Make your case for your favorite—or alternative—in the discussions below. Even better, show us your enclosure! Drop a picture of the one you use in the discussions so we can see it!

A great way to get some life out of a hard drive from a previous build, or your old drive once…
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The Hive Five is based on reader nominations. As with most Hive Five posts, if your favorite was left out, it's not because we hate it—it's because it didn't get the nominations required in the call for contenders post to make the top five. We understand it's a bit of a popularity contest, but if you have a favorite, we want to hear about it. Have a suggestion for the Hive Five? Send us an email at tips+hivefive@lifehacker.com!